Rating: 
Summary: So-so, but kind of slow reading
Review: I've read and greatly enjoyed Wolfe's "New Sun" series. In that series, the writing is complex, but a lot of surprises are in store by the end of the series. Unfortunately, in this series, there are not many surprises. The major problem with the first story is that it plods along rather slowly. Events that are seemingly trivial to the reader are covered in agonizing detail. The second story ("Lake of the Long Sun") is a bit better, as things start to pick up a bit. If you haven't bought any of these books yet, though, see my review of the fourth book, "Exodus from the Long Sun".
Rating:
Summary: So-so, but kind of slow reading
Review: I've read and greatly enjoyed Wolfe's "New Sun" series. In that series, the writing is complex, but a lot of surprises are in store by the end of the series. Unfortunately, in this series, there are not many surprises. The major problem with the first story is that it plods along rather slowly. Events that are seemingly trivial to the reader are covered in agonizing detail. The second story ("Lake of the Long Sun") is a bit better, as things start to pick up a bit. If you haven't bought any of these books yet, though, see my review of the fourth book, "Exodus from the Long Sun".
Rating:
Summary: So-so, but kind of slow reading
Review: I've read and greatly enjoyed Wolfe's "New Sun" series. In that series, the writing is complex, but a lot of surprises are in store by the end of the series. Unfortunately, in this series, there are not many surprises. The major problem with the first story is that it plods along rather slowly. Events that are seemingly trivial to the reader are covered in agonizing detail. The second story ("Lake of the Long Sun") is a bit better, as things start to pick up a bit. If you haven't bought any of these books yet, though, see my review of the fourth book, "Exodus from the Long Sun".
Rating: 
Summary: The first half of the superb Book of the Long Sun
Review: LITANY OF THE LONG SUN contains the first two volumes of Gene Wolfe's four-volume The Book of the Long Sun.NIGHTSIDE THE LONG SUN opens this story of political intrigue, revolution, and Christian allegory set in a starship sent from Earth to colonize a distant planet. Gene Wolfe rose to fame with his magisterial work The Book of the New Sun, which is one of my most cherished books. The Book of the Long Sun takes place, in fact, in the same universe as Wolfe's masterpiece. However, differences abound. The Book of the New Sun is a first-person narrative in which the narrator stands between the reader and a clear view of his world. The Book of the Long Sun, on the other hand, is told in third-person and the setting is richly illustrated by Wolfe's prose. That is not to say that there are no mysteries in the Book of the Long Sun, it is of course a Gene Wolfe novel, but the plot is much more straightforward and clear than in Wolfe's earlier triumph. NIGHTSIDE THE LONG SUN slowly introduces the plot that will later rage through the city of its setting and by the end of the four-volume work utterly change the world in which the characters live. NIGHTSIDE opens with the enlightenment of Patera Silk, an augur (i.e. priest), in Viron, one of the cities within the Whorl, the gigantic starship sent from Urth. The rather pagan inhabitants of the Whorl worship a pantheon of deities based upon the ruler who sent out the starship and his family. Silk's enlightener, however, is an obscure god called the Outsider, because he abides even outside the Whorl, who is quite possibly in fact the Christian God. The Outsider has called upon Silk to save the local church and school, which have been sold for back taxes to a criminal named Blood. Silk, in a bit of bravado, proceeds to break into Blood's mansion in hopes of getting his property back. This attempt at breaking in, along with an exorcism of a bordello, are the sum of NIGHTSIDE THE LONG SUN. It's a slow and simple start, the action of this book takes place over merely two days, but in the following books the pace builds exponentially.The Book of the Long Sun may not be as poetic and full of sophistry as The Book of the New Sun, but it's immensely good reading. Wolfe's use of Christian allegory (much stricter here than in the earlier work), and a plot full of revolution, war, and political mystery is a fine work. LAKE OF THE LONG SUN is the second volume of this series that is linked to Wolfe's acclaimed work The Book of the New Sun. The first volume, NIGHTSIDE THE LONG SUN, was a slow and simple introduction to the Whorl, the giant starship sent out from Urth, and its inhabitants, including the protagonist young Patera Silk. LAKE OF THE LONG SUN picks up the pace significantly, and much is revealed. The book consists of several plot threads that dance around each other but never quite touch. The morning after another theophany occurs in Viron, Silk goes to a remote shrine at Lake Limna in order to confront Crane and extort money from him to save his manteion. Through a coincidental occurence, Silk is lost in the tunnels beneath the city, tunnels that go to the very outside of the Whorl. There, he meets an enigmatic woman who remembers the creation of the Whorl, and for the attentive reader the story's link to The Book of the New Sun is revealed. Meanwhile, back in Viron, political intrigue continues and everyone but Silk himself is certain that Silk must become Caldé of Viron. Auk and Chenille search for Silk at Limna, and Chenille has a run-in with another goddess.The Christian allegory is slight in LAKE OF THE LONG SUN, and the most touching moment is when Silk speaks to Crane of a scene revealed to him in his enlightenment from the Outsider. The next volume of the series, CALDÉ OF THE LONG SUN, is the most visibly Christian of the work, but LAKE has its moments, too. After LITANY, readers who have enjoyed the series so far should move on to EPIPHANY OF THE LONG SUN, which includes the second half, that is the third and fourth novels of the series.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Be Fooled
Review: Some Wolfe fans find the Long Sun books disappointing. At first glance, the writing doesn't seem to be of the same beauty and complexity as that in the books narrated by Severian; the philosophical and metaphysical insights here seem less breathtaking. However, this is a Gene Wolfe novel, so appearances are expected to be deceiving. Patera Silk alone is worth the price of admission, and the plot of Long Sun is Wolfe's best yet, intimately connected to the presentation of the varied and fascinating cast of characters. THE BOOK OF THE LONG SUN rewards rereading perhaps even more than most of Wolfe's work.
Rating:
Summary: Liberating!
Review: The story is of Patera Silk, a devout priest whose future is enmeshed with the gods he serves, takes place within the Whorl, a giant, cylindrical starship that has traveled for generations and is faced with political rebellion and war. Through a series of strange events, Silk finds himself caught up in intrigue and espionage, running against a major crime lord, befriending a cyborg soldier, and encountering at least one of the gods of Mainframe. All of the characters are rich in detail and truly engaging. Oreb the talking bird is my favorite! The books of the Long Sun stand on their own but is also part of the universe of the books of the Short Sun. The mysteries in the Book of the Long Sun are clear (though abstract at times, rewards the reader with repeated reading). THE LONG SUN gradually introduces a plot that will later shakeup the city of its setting and by the end of the four-volume work totally change the Whorl in which the characters live. The transformation of Silk from naive dogmatic priest to a secular authority of sophisitication is interesting and enlightening. These stories are a part of me and will stay with you too long after you've read them. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
Rating:
Summary: You'll remember the story long after
Review: These books are just amazing. The author assumes you are intelligent and doesn't spell everything out for you -- sometimes you have to read between the lines to understand what is going on -- but it is worth the effort. Not "light reading" but deeply engrossing. He has become one of my favorite authors.
Rating: 
Summary: Good read, but i'm missing something...
Review: What they don't seem to tell you about this book, is that the title has a qualifier. The real name of the book is "Litany of the Long Sun; The First Half of the Book of the Long Sun", which begs the questions; where is the second half? As far as I can tell, it's out of print, and unavailable. Hopefully they'll be reprinting it soon. The other problem that I had with this book is that I have no sense of where it fits into the other books that Mr. Wolfe has written. It appears to be a sequel to some Book of the Short Sun, which he is only just beginning to write. My advice would be to go read his Books of the New Sun first, since he wrote that first and the entire New Sun series is available. Other than those two difficulties, I am enjoying the book. It's written as if the reader is someone in that universe, and there are many things which are considered ordinary in that universe that only become understandable after reading for a while. Mr. Wolfe's writting is complex and chewy. His main character is one of the most believable I've ever encountered.
Rating:
Summary: You must read to the end
Review: Wolfe is a master. The character of Patera Silk is one of the most amazing in all of literature. He is the one character who doesn't torture those he loves. (Book of the New Sun) I can see how Wolfe's style of not revealing everything could bother some people - but to me it just makes it all the more magical.
I would recommend this and any of Gene Wolfe's works to anyone
who wants to really think about what they are reading. Those who really dive into his books will find treasure after treasure.
Rating:
Summary: Clarity and depth, simultaneous!
Review: _Litany of the Long Sun_ is the first half of the "Book of the Long Sun." (The second half is supposed to be out sometime in November. I think too that the third and fourth are available in mass market paperback, if you don't wish to wait for the second omnibus.) Gene Wolfe's work is often like opera: you may not understand all the words, may only grasp the basics, but the beauty and depth of the language conveys nuances not found within the text. "Litany" combines the familiar beauty of language often layered with obscure yet contextually clear terminology with a clear and exciting plot. (For those who had difficulty with the language in the "New Sun" series, this series uses less.) Like so much of his work, Wolfe shows rather than describes the unfamiliar world -- really, Whorl, for that is where the action takes place -- through the actions and lives and choices of his characters. Patera Silk is a simple priest in a poor but largely devout neighborhood. He experiences an epiphany (read the second omnibus) in which an obscure god in the pantheon of the Whorl demands that he save his manteion and palaestra which has been sold to a thief (who is more than a thief). He embarks on this holy quest by engaging the help of another thief and quickly finds himself embroiled in a network of men and women (initially unlikable as they are dishonest and criminals) who are more than they appear to be. At the end of a long sequence of events largely outside Patera's control, and through sometimes long exposition (which may come as a relief to some of Wolfe's admiring but normally mystified readers) we learn the apparent fate of our hero. However, this is only the first half and if Wolfe is to be himself, there will be many more surprises. Wolfe fans will not be disappointed, and neither will newcomers to his work. This is likely the best way to be introduced, because this is probably Wolfe's best work to date.
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